Most of us are grieving our taxes in the sense of sorrow and disbelief…but do you have a case to literally grieve your taxes? A friend of mine received a flyer in the mail from a company that offered to represent him in grieving his taxes. Saving money sounded good to him-as it does to most of us-so he signed some papers and the company did the rest. He saved a few hundred dollars on his property taxes. We talked after the fact and my friend found out that he had a stronger case than was negotiated….he could have saved more. The company did not notify him of anything, they just settled.

I don’t know the intention of the company that assisted my friend. I am not saying that everyone sending out fliers is unethical. There are many ethical and professional people who help homeowners negotiate the process. I do think that people should get recommendations before they choose professionals to assist them! And by professionals I mean appraisers, and/or tax representatives (should you choose that route). I also think that whomever you use should be local and know the market.

I would have liked to educate my friend about the tax grievance process as it was designed to be user friendly. That being said it is fairly confusing to many. I am going to give you the advice that I would have liked to have given my friend. Here is a list of things that I think people should know before and while they grieve their property taxes. (more…)